Connected to Chicago (01-13-2019) Special Guest- Jim Durkin

Jan 11, 2019 | mattmellin

Joining the show this week is Jim Durkin. Durkin is the Illinois House Republican Leader. Bill and Jim discuss what to expect with the new Illinois Governor administration starting 1/14. Topics include a proposed graduated income tax hike, recreational marijuana, and the possibility of a Chicago casino.

In this week’s round table segment Bill is joined by Ray Long of the Chicago Tribune,Greg Hinz of Crains, Heather Cherone of The Daily Line, Lynn Sweet and Fran Spielman of the Chicago Sun-Times. The round table begins with an update on the Mayoral race. Toni Preckwinkle gets criticism for a new campaign ad, J.B Pritzker takes the oath of office and becomes the new Governor of Illinois on Monday 1/14, and how has the partial Government shut down affected us here locally in Chicago.

This week’s community spotlight segment is with Nick Gale.

The American Society of Civil Engineers has given Illinois a “C-” on their Infrastructure Report Card. Kristina Swallow, the society’s past-president, says there are problems with bridges and roads and there is a need for funding for future aviation growth.

Recent polling from POLITICO and Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health said that increasing infrastructure spending is one of the top priorities for Americans for the new Congress. 79% of people polled said it is “extremely important.” Infrastructure spending ranks high for both parties, with 88 percent of Democrats and 81 percent of Republicans surveyed calling it “extremely important.”
President Trump and Speaker Pelosi have both signaled they want to work on infrastructure together – a rare opportunity for bipartisanship. With a new Congress coming in January, infrastructure investment must come first.